Copa Libertadores Group stage
Jesus’ men prepare to defend their South American title
The first Libertadores of the new decade will climax with a November 21 Final in Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana stadium, the home ground of Flamengo, and the defending champions will certainly expect to be present on the big day.
Under Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus there is little sign of Fla resting on the laurels of a magical 2019. They can count on an array of attacking options, although the loss of Spanish centreback Pablo Mari, who has joined Arsenal on loan, is a big blow. He made the high defensive line viable last year, but without him they could be vulnerable. Their group is far from easy, so there could be some early jitters.
While Flamengo are undoubtedly the team to beat, fellow Brazilians Gremio will be gunning for revenge after their semi-final humiliation last year. The 2017 winners are a well-run club and they have backed coach Renato Portaluppi, who has been allowed to strengthen the squad this year, with priority given to cup competitions.
Palmeiras may be the one club in South America capable of matching the financial resources of Flamengo, but they had a frustrating 2019. Having bucked the trend for foreign coaches in Brazil, they have put their faith in former national team and Real Madrid boss Vanderlei Luxemburgo who will be under pressure to produce results
– and to do so in style.
Meanwhile, the long reign of Marcelo Gallardo continues at River Plate, who will be expected to lead the Argentinian challenge. Exequiel Palacios has joined Bayer Leverkusen and will be a major loss for the side that came within minutes of winning last year’s title.
Once again River must be considered contenders but they must be wary of repeating last term’s slow start in a group that contains three former champions. They will not be helped by having to play their first two home games behind closed doors.
River’s great rivals Boca Juniors appear to be in an easier group – which is just as well. While River are all about continuity, Boca are on their third coach in three years with the return of Miguel Angel Russo, who took them to the Libertadores title in 2007.
If there is to be a repeat then the team will have to grow during the competition, but Russo’s task of finding a blend has been hampered by the loss of attacking midfielder Alexis Mac Allister, whose loan spell from Brighton & Hove Albion has finished.
THE NEXT RUNG
Some of the other Argentinian clubs would be very unlikely winners. Defensa
y Justica, for example, lost coach Mariano Sosa who resigned in January in protest at player sales and was replaced by Hernan Crespo. The most likely other Argentinian contender are the current domestic champions, Racing. They also lost their coach, Eduardo Coudet, but Sebastian Beccacece, who is a former assistant to Jorge Sampaoli, is a fascinating replacement. Their group looks straightforward and they should be very watchable.
Sampaoli enjoyed a splendid year in Brazil with Santos but he has since moved on and veteran Portuguese coach Jesualdo Ferreira could find him a hard act to follow. While Sampaoli did wonders on a shoestring, Ferreira may have even less to work with, but at least his team are in one of the easier groups.
Coudet, meanwhile, has gone to Brazil to take over at Internacional, a club striving to improve on last year’s mediocrity. They will have had to negotiate two qualifying rounds to make the group stage, but if successful they will find themselves up against local rivals Gremio.
The will be aware, however, that progression may not be straightforward, as fellow Brazilian giants Corinthians discovered. With the club’s recent style of play having become somewhat sterile, they appointed Tiago Nunes as coach in the hope that he could come up with something more expansive. But leading 2-0 at home to Paraguayan side Guarani in the second qualifying stage, they conceded a second-half goal to draw 2-2 on aggregate and go out on away goals.
Losing Nunes was a blow to
Athletico Paranaense, an ambitious club who won the Copa Sudamericana in 2018 and now have their sights set on the Libertadores, although this year would appear to find them in a state of transition. There will be more pressure
While Flamengo are undoubtedly the team to beat, fellow Brazilians Gremio will be gunning for revenge
on Sao Paulo, who as a result of their triumphs in the early 1990s have a special bond with this competition. Much will be expected of coach Fernando Diniz and his mix of veterans such as Dani Alves and the club’s latest youth products.
INTERESTING OUTSIDERS
Since the Libertadores became a yearlong competition in 2017, Brazil and Argentina have supplied all but five of the 24 quarter-finalists, but 2008 champions LDU of Ecuador reached the last eight a few months ago. Pablo Repetto’s team do not look as strong this year but they remain dangerous, especially at home.
LDU’s neighbours Independiente
del Valle are interesting outsiders. A tiny club that focuses on youth development, they outplayed all comers on the way to winning last year’s Sudamericana, and it will be fascinating to see if they can show the same form in the Libertadores.
A country that consistently punches above its weight is Paraguay. Daniel
Garnero’s Olimpia have been the dominant domestic force and veteran striker Roque Santa Cruz will hope to carry his superb recent form into the competition. Libertad are also consistent Libertadores performers and under the vastly experienced Ramon Diaz they will have their sights set high.
Colombia were the last country to break the Argentina/Brazil monopoly, and they have a couple of interesting representatives. Junior of Barranquilla have been the dominant domestic club for a while, without being able to make an impression on the Libertadores, but maybe this will be their year. And
America of Cali are back for the first time since 2009 after Costa Rican coach Alexandre Guimaraes took them to the domestic title.
THE REST
There will be plenty of interest in Diego Forlan’s coaching debut with Penarol of Uruguay, but local rivals Nacional ended last year as the stronger of the two and would seem to be in an easier group. There are hopes that Universidad
Catolica might be the best side to come out of Chile in a while. They have lost coach Gustavo Quinteros to Tijuana of Mexico, though Argentina’s Ariel Holan is an intriguing replacement.
While Chilean clubs have only managed to qualify one team from the group phase in the last five years, in the case of Peru it is one in nine, and one in 10 for Venezuela.
But with factors such as altitude always a consideration when teams travel to La Paz in Bolivia, the Libertadores always has potential for an upset.